Perkons (band)
Encyclopedia
Pērkons was one of the most important and scandalous Latvia
n rock
bands
of the 1980s and is still performing in concerts. The group's lineup was Juris Kulakovs (keyboard
), Juris Sējāns (bass
, vocals), Leons Sējāns (lead guitar
), Ieva Akurātere (vocals), Raimonds Bartaševics (vocals), Dainis Strazdiņš (drum
s).
At first, Pērkons played two completely different kinds of music - instrumental
classical music, and wild, fascinating rock'n'roll bordering on hard rock
. The band is without doubt better known for the latter. Their songs became the folklore
of the youth, speaking about things nobody else dared to speak about. Therefore it comes as little surprise that the band was for no expressed reason banned by the Soviet
power in 1983. They continued to play as an ensemble of the kolkhoz
"Soviet Latvia", careful not to mention the title Pērkons again. In 1985, after a concert in Ogre
, a group of teenagers demolished two train compartments. After this, the group was banned again immediately, even though it had nothing to do with the incident. (The concert, demolished train, and court trials were documented by Juris Podnieks in the film, Vai viegli būt jaunam?
(Is It Easy to Be Young).
After a few more years, in 1987, they arrived to the song festival Liepājas dzintars (Amber of Liepāja) as the ensemble of the fishermen's kolkhoz "Selga".
The texts of their music are at least as rebellious
as the music itself, mostly written by Māris Melgalvs, one of best known examples is Balāde par gulbi
.
Latvia
Latvia , officially the Republic of Latvia , is a country in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by Estonia , to the south by Lithuania , to the east by the Russian Federation , to the southeast by Belarus and shares maritime borders to the west with Sweden...
n rock
Rock music
Rock music is a genre of popular music that developed during and after the 1960s, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by rhythm and blues and country music...
bands
Rock Band
Rock Band is a music video game developed by Harmonix Music Systems, published by MTV Games and Electronic Arts. It is the first title in the Rock Band series. The PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 versions were released in the United States on November 20, 2007, while the PlayStation 2 version was...
of the 1980s and is still performing in concerts. The group's lineup was Juris Kulakovs (keyboard
Synthesizer
A synthesizer is an electronic instrument capable of producing sounds by generating electrical signals of different frequencies. These electrical signals are played through a loudspeaker or set of headphones...
), Juris Sējāns (bass
Bass guitar
The bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
, vocals), Leons Sējāns (lead guitar
Lead guitar
Lead guitar is a guitar part which plays melody lines, instrumental fill passages, guitar solos, and occasionally, some riffs within a song structure...
), Ieva Akurātere (vocals), Raimonds Bartaševics (vocals), Dainis Strazdiņš (drum
Drum
The drum is a member of the percussion group of musical instruments, which is technically classified as the membranophones. Drums consist of at least one membrane, called a drumhead or drum skin, that is stretched over a shell and struck, either directly with the player's hands, or with a...
s).
At first, Pērkons played two completely different kinds of music - instrumental
Instrumental
An instrumental is a musical composition or recording without lyrics or singing, although it might include some non-articulate vocal input; the music is primarily or exclusively produced by musical instruments....
classical music, and wild, fascinating rock'n'roll bordering on hard rock
Hard rock
Hard rock is a loosely defined genre of rock music which has its earliest roots in mid-1960s garage rock, blues rock and psychedelic rock...
. The band is without doubt better known for the latter. Their songs became the folklore
Folklore
Folklore consists of legends, music, oral history, proverbs, jokes, popular beliefs, fairy tales and customs that are the traditions of a culture, subculture, or group. It is also the set of practices through which those expressive genres are shared. The study of folklore is sometimes called...
of the youth, speaking about things nobody else dared to speak about. Therefore it comes as little surprise that the band was for no expressed reason banned by the Soviet
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
power in 1983. They continued to play as an ensemble of the kolkhoz
Kolkhoz
A kolkhoz , plural kolkhozy, was a form of collective farming in the Soviet Union that existed along with state farms . The word is a contraction of коллекти́вное хозя́йство, or "collective farm", while sovkhoz is a contraction of советское хозяйство...
"Soviet Latvia", careful not to mention the title Pērkons again. In 1985, after a concert in Ogre
Ogre, Latvia
Ogre is the principal town of Ogre District in Central Latvia, 36 km east of the capital Riga, situated at the confluence of the Daugava and Ogre rivers...
, a group of teenagers demolished two train compartments. After this, the group was banned again immediately, even though it had nothing to do with the incident. (The concert, demolished train, and court trials were documented by Juris Podnieks in the film, Vai viegli būt jaunam?
Vai viegli but jaunam?
Vai viegli būt jaunam? is a Soviet-era Latvian documentary film directed by Juris Podnieks. It was filmed in 1986 with dialog in both Latvian and Russian, and is considered to be among the most controversial movies of its era...
(Is It Easy to Be Young).
After a few more years, in 1987, they arrived to the song festival Liepājas dzintars (Amber of Liepāja) as the ensemble of the fishermen's kolkhoz "Selga".
The texts of their music are at least as rebellious
Rebellion
Rebellion, uprising or insurrection, is a refusal of obedience or order. It may, therefore, be seen as encompassing a range of behaviors aimed at destroying or replacing an established authority such as a government or a head of state...
as the music itself, mostly written by Māris Melgalvs, one of best known examples is Balāde par gulbi
Balade par gulbi
Balāde par gulbi is a song by Latvian Rock band Pērkons, written by Māris Melgalvis and Juris Kulakovs . Written while Latvia was still part of USSR, it is noted for its anti-soviet subtext - most of the song analyses the stupidity of killing a swan, but in the end resolves that the swan is so...
.